


Authors Commentary

by Young_Leaf



Series: The Avatars Melody [2]
Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Commentary, Glossary, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-15
Updated: 2020-03-15
Packaged: 2021-02-28 22:34:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,055
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23144764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Young_Leaf/pseuds/Young_Leaf
Summary: A commentary and glossary with regards to “The Avatars Melody”
Series: The Avatars Melody [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1664590
Kudos: 2





	Authors Commentary

  * _**Ryū- Japanese for Dragon**_
  * _**Ryūgū-jō- Japanese for Dragon Palace. In Japanese Mythology, it is home to Ryōjin, the Dragon God who lives under the sea**_
  * _**Ryōjin- The Japanese Dragon God who lives under the sea**_
  * _**Amaterasu- The Japanese Sun Goddess. The Japanese Royal family, whom I based the Fire Nation Royal Family off of, used to claim to be descendants of Amaterasu. This is why Zuko refers to her as his ancestor.**_
  * _**Jūnihitoe- Formal attire which used to be worn by women in the Imperial Court in the Heian era. Links to certain attire that I liked and thought that Azula and Zuko ( if he was still under Ozai) would wear are available below:**_



_**[Jūnihitoe](https://www.pinterest.com/pin/323555554458019417/) ** _

_**[Jūnihitoe](http://tokyopic.com/image/2502) ** _

  * _**Shōji- Traditional Japanese sliding doors**_
  * _**Sakura- Cherry Blossoms**_
  * _**Oleanders- Favourite flower of famous Japanese author Dazai Osamu**_
  * _**Koi pond- Common feature in traditional Japanese gardens**_
  * _**Sun viewings- In Japan, aristocrats conducted Moon viewing parties by ponds. I interchanged Moon with Sun, because I thought the Fire Nation would revere the Sun over the moon, it being their source of power after all. I do not know if Moon viewing is still conducted now.**_
  * **_Sumpu Teien- Named after Sumpu Castle. The garden was modeled after the garden in Sumpu Castle. Therefore, it was named after the Castle. According to what I’ve looked up, Teien means garden. Correct me if I am wrong._**
  * **_Dragon Pond- Pond in Heian Jingu in Kyoto. Has a stepping stone path through it._**



**_Links:_ **

[Sumpu Castle](https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e6352.html)

[Heian Jingu ](https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3904.html)

  * **_Chang’ an-Tianshan Corridor- Modern day name for the Silk Road_**
  * **_Ao- Japanese for blue_**
  * **_Hannya- Noh Mask used to represent a jealous female demon_**
  * **_Omote- Another term used to refer to Noh Masks_**
  * **_Ao Hannya Omote- Reference to the Blue Spirit Mask used by Zuko in the canon series_**
  * **_Red Vest- Reference to Aka Manto (Red cape/ Red vest). For more information, click the link below:_** ** _  
  
_**



**_[Aka Manto](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aka_Manto) _ **

  * **_Kuchisake-onna - Literally means ‘Slit-mouthed woman’. A manevolent figure in Japanese folklore and urban legends. For more information, click the link below:_**



[Kuchisake-onna ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuchisake-onna)

  * **_Foot binding- Chinese custom of applying tight binding to the feet of young girls to modify the shape and size of their feet. It began to die out in the 20th century due to anti-foot binding campaigns_**
  * **_Caishen- Chinese folk religion deity. God of wealth. Considering that Toph is the daughter of an extremely rich merchant, I thought that it’d be natural if the Beifong family was extremely devoted to the God of wealth._**
  * **_Qiè- Chinese for Concubine.  
  
_**
  * _**Ruqun- Most basic type of hanfu. A link for some images that I found I liked is provided below:**_



**[Ruqun](https://www.newhanfu.com/4-tips-you-should-know-about-ruqun.html) **   
  


  * **_Tangzhuang- Chinese straight collared jacket. Updated version of the Qing magua. Link to image is given below:_**



[Tangzhuang](https://www.traditionalchineseclothes.com/product/plain-beige-cotton-long-sleeve-tangzhuang-chinese-kungfu-set)

  * **_Yukata- Summer kimono, made of thin cloth._**
  * **_Salwar Kameez- Traditional Indian dress combination. Worn by both men and woman. Very comfy, can confirm._**
  * **_Igaluk*-Inuit lunar deity_**
  * **_Aukaneck*-Inuit deity whose movement created the waves_**
  * _**Wendigo- A man-eating creature or evil spirit from Algonquian folklore.**_
  * _**Uumarnituq and Aakulujjuusi- The first humans, according to Inuit folklore. For more information, click on the link below:**_



_**[Uumarnituq and Aakulujjuusi](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_themes_in_mythology#Mythologies_of_the_Americas)  
  
** _

  * _**Sedna- Inuit Goddess of the Sea and Marine Animals. Probably one of my favourite myths out of the ones I looked up. For more information, click on the link below:**_



_**[Sedna](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sedna_\(mythology\))  
  
** _

  * _**The Great Divide- Name taken from the episode of the same name in the canon series. Here, it refers to a civil war between the North and Southern Water Tribes, which eventually led to their separation.  
**_
  * _**Near and Further South- The Near South refers to The Southern Tribes, where Katara and Sokka are from, while the Further South refers to the Foggy Swamp Tribe, which I’ve changed. They are now multiple tribes that live near and in the Earth Kingdom, and are usually found near waterbodies. They are free from Earth Kingdom influence and safe from Fire Nation attacks, as they have kept themselves well hidden and have cut themselves off from the rest of the world.**_
  * _**Amarok- Wolves that stalk, kill and devour anyone foolish enough to hunt at night. For more information, click the link below:**_



[Amarok](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amarok_\(wolf\))

  * **_Tiānmìng/Mandate of Heaven- Political and religious teaching used to justify the rule of the Emperor of China._**
  * **_Huizhong- I looked up popular Taiwanese baby names for girls and this was one of the options. It means Wise Loyal._**
  * **_The scalping is a reference to headhunting, which was practiced by the Taiwanese Aborigines, until it was stopped due to Japanese suppression. I chose to do scalping instead as the Earth Kingdom Officials would make it very obvious on how much they valued their hair, and I thought that the rebels would prefer to mutilate the body by taking the most valued part away, just to send a message_**



* * *

**_ Authors Commentary _ **

_The funny thing about this is that the idea didn’t come from reading ASOIAF or watching GOT (I haven’t done either in a long time), but from watching A Stranger in Shanghai, which was based off the writings of Akutagawa Ryūnosuke, who was best known for his short stories. I don’t know how it came about, but it did. I will probably do A Stranger In Shanghai AU as well someday, but that is for later._

_This AU also stemmed from my decision to remodel Air Nomad culture, because honestly, the creators made them seem overly perfect. Now this is just an opinion. If you disagree, just state it politely in the comments with your reasoning, because I would love to have a discussion regarding it. So, I have separated the Air Nomads into two groups: The ones that live in monasteries and the actual Nomads. I will elaborate on this in later chapters and commentaries._

_I also wanted to see how Avatar would be like if it was a little darker and contained actual Asian and Native American legends and spirits and voila! This was born._

_The characters will obviously take a detour from their canon counterparts, considering how different this universe is from canon, and so will the role of the Avatar. As a result,_ _you can expect a lot of world building in future chapters._

_I would like to keep the commentary for the first chapter short. If you enjoy the story or notice any mistakes and/or inaccuracies, please leave a comment_


End file.
